The Indri Indri ( the biggest lemur in the world, in Madagascar )

family of indridae is, with its 75 to 90 cm (adult size), the largest of the current lemurs. It's the only lemur without tail (It has tail but a very small one). Weight about 8 to 12 kg. The Indri Indri (or the Black & White Teddy-like lemur) can live up to 40 years old. Inhabits humid rain forests (in the East part of Madagascar). The most indicated spot for its observation is ANDASIBE (a small Natural Reserve of 810 ha, at an altitude of 1 000 meters).

The Indri Indri ( the biggest lemur in the world, in Madagascar )

is diurnal, found in a small group of 2 to 10 individuals, and not exceeding a territory of 7 ha, the Indri Indri eats chiefly leaves : 32 different species of leaves, it's why it's impossible to breed it in captivity. That means the Indri Indri eats approximately 1,5 kg of leaves per day. This biggest lemur of the world seldom goes down to the ground, and it does it only when it feels an acidulated taste in its stomach, also it neutralizes it by eating the ground.

The Indri Indri ( the biggest lemur in the world, in Madagascar )

becomes adult at 7 years old and it gives birth to only one baby every 2 or 3 years, with a 6 months gestation. The Indri Indri copulate in November. The baby catches to the belly of its mother, the baby stops to suck its mother after 8 months.

The Indri Indri cries and voice ( the biggest lemur in the world, in Madagascar )

Indri has several strange cries, prolonged and modulated ( communication cry, love cry, alert cry, … ), with a loud voice. Compared to other mammals, primates in general are very vocal, and lemurs are no exception. Lemurs will not only respond to alarm calls of their own species, but also alarm calls of other species and those of non-predatory birds.

Lemur calls can be very loud and carry long distances. The loudest is the Indri, whose calls can be heard up to 2 km or more and thus communicate more effectively the territorial boundaries over its 34 to 40 hectares home range.

Both Ruffed lemurs and the Indri exhibit contagious calling, where one individual or group starts a loud call and others within the area join in. The song of the Indri can last 45 seconds to more than 3 minutes and tends to coordinate to form a stable duet comparable to that of gibbons. Some of the most common calls are predator alarm calls.

The predators of their babies are the " Fosa " ( the biggest carnivore in Madagascar ) and some raptors. When they are afraid, they move by successive jumps from branches to branches. And it is always the female which decides the direction where the group must take.

In general, levels of aggression tend to correlate with relative canine height. The Indri has smaller canines and exhibits lower levels of aggression. When neighboring groups of the same species defend their territories, the conflict can take the form of ritualized defense. The Indri defends its home range with ritualized " singing " battles.

Andasibe-Mantadia National Park ( formerly known as Perinet, Madagascar )

Is actually made up of two parks : Reserve Speciale Analamazaotra and Mantadia National Park. Its proximity to the capital Tana ( Antananarivo ), 140 Km away , or 3 - 4 hours drive along Route Nationale 2, makes this one of the more popular and easily accessible parks in Madagascar.

The Fauna that you usually see at « Andasibe Perinet - Mantadia National Park » are :

Indri Indri ( the nowadays largest lemur in the world, an endangered lemur ), Black & white ruffed lemur, Eastern wolly lemur, Red-bellied lemur , Brown rufous lemur, Rufous mouse lemur & Diademed sifaka. Parsoni chameleon, Brevicornis chameleon, Chamaeleo gastrotenia, Brookesia, Nasutus chameleon, Zonosaurus sp. & Phelsuma sp. lizards for reptiles. AND Madagascar paradise flycatcher, Blue coua, Madagascar turtle dove, Madagascar vasa parrots, Forest-rock trush, Madagascar brush-warbler, Madagascar partridge, Madagascar little grebe, Common moorhen, Madagascar coucal, Malagasy kingfisher, Blue vanga, Red-fronted coua, Madagascar bulbul, Madagascar mannikin, Madagascar red fody, Common myna, Tylas vanga, Madagascar magpie-robin, Stonechat, Cuckoo-roller & Madagascar cisticola for birds.

It's better to have one full day to visit these 2 Parks ( Andasibe Perinet and Mantadia )

A good trekking through Pandanus trees and tree-ferns. Where you can see too a large numbers of epiphytes and orchids. Andasibe Perinet - Mantadia National Park is in a mid-altitude rainforest ( about 1000 m - 1200 m ), very easy to get to, just at 3 Kms to the North of the main N2 Antananarivo-Toamasina road ; about 140 Kms or four hours drive from Antananarivo.

The pleasant drive over highlands into the escarpment passes through many mud-hut villages and picturesque mountain landscapes. The climate is not too hot, and rain falls mainly at night so the mistshrouded rainforest creates an awesome spectacle in the early morning.

You can visit too the village of Andasibe which is a small medieval village. But it's a village which merits a couple of hours exploring and soaking up its inherent serenity. Andasibe and Mantadia area lies in a region of low hills covered by degraded forest and is punctuated by beautiful small lakes.

The most striking feature about the Indri Indri lemur is its voice :

While other lemurs grunt, the Indri Indri sings an eerie and very loud wailing sound that resembles a police siren, and it carries for up to 3 Km away. Family group often occupy ranges which are proclaimed by territorial calls, helping to maintain spacing between groups of Indri. The best time to spot the Indri Indri is either early morning or late afternoon.

For more information, you can write to the following people. They have alot of experiences about travel and big travel. I have had the opportunity to meet them, I was their tour guide during their trip in Madagascar. Thanks alot to them to permit me to put their names and adresses on this web site. Don't hesitate to contact them and thank you so much :